Think about some Bible lessons you learned way-back-when as a kid (or even recently) that could help you deal with the unexpected today.

Joshua has an interesting backstory that I think sheds some light on why he was selected to fill Moses’ shoes after his death. Numbers 11:28 tells us that Joshua was Moses’ helper since youth; in fact, Exodus 24:13 indicates that Joshua was even by Moses’ side when he went up the mountain to obtain the Ten Commandments. In his role as Moses’ aide, Joshua had several personal encounters with the Lord and witnessed his miracles first-hand.

Is it any wonder, then, that Moses selected Joshua as one of the 12 scouts that he sent into Canaan to scope out the new territory? Interestingly, up until the Canaan adventure, Joshua’s name was actually Hoshea. The Message paraphrase explains it this way in Numbers 13:16b: “Moses gave Hoshea (Salvation) son of Nun a new name—Joshua (God-Saves).” I’m not a linguist, but I think there is a fascinating distinction in how those two names are translated. Salvation is a noun, and it sounds fairly abstract—it’s a term that means deliverance. “God-Saves,” on the other hand, sounds very active—it indicates that God himself is doing the rescuing. And, as we already saw in Joshua’s backstory, he was no stranger to seeing God at work!

Unlike 10 of the other spies who spied on Canaan, Joshua (and his buddy Caleb) saw the potential for God to act. The 10 cowards just saw challenges and made excuses for why they should not go into Canaan. Joshua lived out his new name and played a critical role in God saving the Israelites, time and time again. Eventually, God selected him as the succession plan for Moses.

Moses gets a lot of accolades for parting the Red Sea, but did you know that the Lord helped Joshua do the same thing at the Jordan River? Joshua 3:7 (MSG) tells us: “God said to Joshua, “This very day I will begin to make you great in the eyes of all Israel. They’ll see for themselves that I’m with you in the same way that I was with Moses.” Joshua wasn’t an excuse-maker; he was a God-follower. He put his faith into action and did not sit by passively just because the world said it was too hard. He kept a close relationship with the Lord, and he accomplished great things for God’s kingdom.

When you read wild & crazy tales about Noah, Jonah, & Jesus’ disciples, are they just legends to you, or the handiwork of our eternal Lord?

What can we do to ensure that the situation depicted in Joshua 2:10 doesn’t come true for the generation after ours?

Think back to a situation that you consider to be a “God thing” or answer to prayer. Tell that story to someone & brag on God’s awesomeness.

One of my kids astutely pointed out the other day: “It’s ok to not know all the answers in life.” Exactly – that’s where faith comes in!

If you’re willing to talk when an opportunity arises, then ask God to put someone on your mind to share your faith journey with today.

They probably know your favorite hangouts, hometown, and a secret or two, but do your closest friends know how your faith journey started?

It’s Homecoming season – a time to reflect on memories from years past. Thank God today for some specific ways that he has moved in your life.

The local Christian bookstore contains shelves full of Bibles in various sizes, colors, and translations, right next to more shelves of commentaries, study guides, and other resources. With so many options at our fingertips, it can be easy to forget that this second-to-none book actually contains dozens of individual writings, many of which were simply letters. Two of those letters – Luke and Acts – were written to one man’s attention, Theophilus.

I don’t think you’ll find Theophilus on a Top 1,000 Baby Names list nowadays, but apparently, it was pretty common back then. Consequently, scholars aren’t even certain who he was. Some say that he might have been a Roman official, since he is addressed very formally at the beginning of Luke. Others think he could have been a leader in the early church or perhaps just a friend Luke was trying to share his faith with. In fact, in Luke 1:4, the author explains that he is writing to help shed light on the things that Theophilus had been taught about Jesus’ time on earth. The book of Acts seems to pick up where he left off in Luke.

Regardless of how they knew each other or what Theophilus’ status was, the fact remains that Luke thought it was important enough to share his personal observations with him – and how great it is for us that we have his writings to refer to, even today! How else would we know Luke’s story if it had not been recorded, somehow? I feel sad when I read verses like Joshua 2:10 (NIV), which describes how “another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.” It makes me wonder: did the parents not pass down stories to their kids? Did no one share about all the great things that God had accomplished on their behalf? Were the stories of biblical heroes like Noah and Moses just legends to them?

From Abraham to Joshua to Malachi and pages upon pages in between, God’s people seemed to forget his goodness. As one generation died off, the next generation pleaded ignorance about the stories of God’s rescues and triumphs. It’s as if they had a mindset that since they weren’t alive during the crossing of the Jordan or when the walls of Jericho fell, then they didn’t need to bother with getting to know the God who had done miracles for their ancestors.

Let’s not be like those generations! You and I may not have the first-person perspective that someone like Luke experienced, but we still have our own faith-walk stories to share. Maybe your “Theophilus” is a friend or family member whose life is far from Christ, or perhaps they are brand-new in faith and wrestling with a lot of questions. Will you make time to share your story? If you don’t tell it, then who will?